Subterranean building



(I. B. LAWTON SUBTERRANEAN BUILI DING Filed March 5, 1927 2 SheetsSheet nomdoz Cyar/es 3 Za w/0" amass/nu,

Au 2a, 1928.

' C. B. LAWTON SUBTERRANEAN BUILDING Filed March 5, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 even date there disclosed a novel systein o li ly described and then claimed, and reference l subterranean building or an underg $165119 HIP-PHI f ll} city beingexpensive for parking, garage or construct niybuilding under the ground with interfere withpedestrianorvehicular traiiici natural appearance maintained.

embodied in the basement or a surtacebui1dwalls t with said walls perpendicular andthe i in area so that treinsoine the uppermost Wards the centeroft the building, instepped 90 portions Of various floors wi vided theretor. lnthis inunnerjthe weighty such stepped formation may be continued 9 safely supporting the subterranean building. said floors I arrange sinuous ramps or 1n- 50 aftord a maximum parking or storage space 55 heavy vehicular trafic.

Patentedr'ang. 2%, i928. i

rte meli' it ti CHARLES nfnawron, or :enrnorr, MICHIGAN. suernnnannan BUILDING. i Application filed March 3, 1927. Serial No. 172,307. i

In my companion application filed under My invention will be hereinafterspecifical sinuous ramps or inclined ways that may be will now be had to the drawnugs, wherein Y advantageously used in buildings tor parking Figure 1 is a vertical sectional viewot the 5 or storing automobiles orother vehicles, also subterraneanbuilding; inaccordance with my fli b ildings 1n which there may be vehicular invention; a l i F tra'l'hc and storage ott merchandise. I l Fig. 2 1s a diagrammatic plan illustrating This invention anus to use practically the the system of ramps or inclined ways, and same system oi: ramps or inclined "ways In a Fig. 3 is a horiozntalsectional view taken 31m; structure havmgr a superficial root. On ac- To putmy inventionintopractice, I select count o'L' real estate in the center of the apublic pieceotground andobtain a right to storage purposes, I aim to locate buildings the root 1 ot'the building a sufiicientdistancel under parks, public squares, streets or other below the surface 2 of the ground toaroidany 7" places upon which buildings cannot be erect interference. with city sewers, mains or coned. Probably the only yaluable space occuduits. With the root at such a depth under pied by my buildin that used for entrance the ground the surface of the ground may be and exits and these can be located so as not to tilled, as in the case of a public park, and the,

The same system-of ramps which is applica- The building is preferably rectangular in ble to a subterranean buildin may bealso ilan and includes outerwalls 0 and inner b a i inn; i'tthe basement can be used for such 13111 walls t connected by floors 5 sustained by )osc and in all instancesthe basement or inner zigzagwalls 17whichalso sustainthe: 8

subterranean structures are designed to afford roof 1 and the ground on the roof. I ample foundation and resistance tothegreat The floors 5 will afford large parking"or weight to which such structures may be suhstorage areas andthe floors may be all of the" jectcd by the storage or nioyementoi vehicles same area for a desired depth in the ground. therein. For instance, thereare'shown four floors or 8 Briefly described, my subterranean struc equal area andtroin there on down into the ture includes a phirality 0t superposed floors ground the floors gradually diminish in area underground {LYlClSOi'llG otthe floors are of by having the perpendicular inner and outer equal area, while others gradually diniinish side walls of the lowerlnostfioors set in, tofloors towards the lowermost floor there will formation. 'llnssisbroughtabout by an ar be a stepped tormation by which marginal rangernent of perpendicular inner-and outer ll be supported Walls 1n wh ch some of the outer walls 3 are by the ground or ground ioundationsprodirectly under some of the inner walls l. and

oi the structure intbe grounc will have downwardly .until'the lowermost. floor has a w; a we qinu cifect precluding any danger L, considerably smaller parking orstoring area. I one side of the structure settling or fsuikua; Floors of equalarea have been deslgnated 15 relatiyeto another side.

' l iguratiyelyspeak; andi rorn the lowermost floor 5 the floors proing the side foundation walls extend under gressively decrease in area and are designated 1 stepped-in side walls of the structureandthus 6,7,8,9,10and11. y 1. .w 5; cooperate with bottom foundation walls in F Between the inner and outer walls ofallof f in such buildingthe ramps are arranged to'xclines, some 0t which are for entrancepura poses and others for exit purposes. Withthe 1 U for vehicles and merchandise and irrespective building substantially rectangularthere will I l oi the depth of the building; there will be be two entrancerainps or subwayslQat diagg adual grades tor the entrance and exit of onally opposed cornersoiitheupperrnost floor; Vehicles, without any congestion incident to 5,said ramps orfsubways ha ing agradual grade from the surface of theground tolthe IH:-

floor 5. The other diagonally opposed corlar ramps or subways reaching the park by certain streets and in this manner avoid traffic congestion.

V a to a desired floor.

portionate decrease in "the a from the sixth floor wardly at one of the passagewayslfi and enter a there are two up floors and those ramps From the uppermost floor 5 ramps are arranged for gradual descent to other-lower usedfor down traf: fic are designated 14 and those for up traffic aredesignated 15. h a y a At the corners of the building and on each floor there are passageways 16v so that adescending or ascending vehicle may passon areathere is a prolength of the inner walls 4, consequently a descending vehicle can readily swing in- As the floors decrease in thedescendingramp between the sixth and seventh floors. Such travel may be continued 11, for the reason that a .to the lowermost floor ramps at opposite sides ofeach floor and two down ramps at opposite sides of each floor with the ramps continuous from theuppermost floor to the lowerthe passageway, 1 4

most floor. Withproper trafiic regulations it becomes necessaryforall vehicles to travel around the building, either up ordown with alllof the up vehicles traveling in one di rection, thus avoiding. confusion particularly when the passageways 16'aredesignated to indicate the purpose ofv theramp adjacent a As in my companion application the walls 1 cooperatewith partitions 18 infer-m ing stalls or compartments in which vehicles or merchandise maybe placed: The stalls or compartments are in rows with aisles19 bemost rows, so that Vehicles about on each floorwithout interfering with;

l tween .therows and driveways 20 at the ends of the rows and perpendicular with the outer- 1 any ramp traffic.

I attach considerable importance to the" steppedformation of the lowermost floors of thebuilding for the reasonthatrvarions floors and side walls ofthe building may be firmly braced bytheaground without anyfdanger of 1 oneside of the building settling more than another. This is preferable when there are manyfloors of like area and particularlvif the underground structure formsthe base ment of a surface building.

In excavating side wall. formation approximating forty-five per.cent, consequently there isa natural lav of earthon which the building will and port said ramps,

zigzag may be moved perpendicular walls between said for the underground build ling there will be a natural stepped or-ra1npp n all buildings provision will be made for properdraiuage and for the passage of water mains or any other underground conduits through the building.

7 What I claim is a 1. A subterraneanbuilding having floors gradually decreasing in area, and ramps at the marginal edges of said floors with said ramps-continuous from the lowermost floor to thenppermost floor. I

2. A subterranean building as called for in claim 1, wherein inner and outerwalls supand walls and partitions afford compartments oneach floor.

3. A subterranean building having superposed fioors some-of which are of equal area and others gradually decreasing in area, and

up anddown ramps communicating with all of said floors. a a

4. i A subterranean building as called for in claim 3, wherein there are two up ramps and two down ramps with the entrances to said ramps in opposed relation. l

5. A subterranean building comprising inner and outer walls, floors between the inner walls, ramps between the inner and outer walls communicating with said floors, some of said outer continuation ofsome of said inner walls to decrease the area of some of said floors.

6. A subterranean building comprising inner and outer walls, floors between the inner walls, ramps between the inner and outer walls being set under and in walls communicating with said floors, some of said outer and inner walls being inset to afford astepped lowerfioor formation for the ground, and ramps on the stepped ground,

communicating with said floors.

9. A subterranean building having a continuous ramp foundation, and floors communicating withthe ramps of the foundation.

' 10. An excavation' having ramp side walls,

horizontal floors in the excavation communicating with the ramps of the side walls, and floors.

11. In an excavation of stepped side wall formation, abni lding having bottom and side walls conforming to the formation of the excavation and said building communicating with said ramps In testimonywhereof I afiix my signature.

CHARLES LAVV'ION.

stepped formation with ramps.

providing ramps, and floors in 

